something new
by SaveMarissa
Summary: She's got her something old, something blue, and something borrowed.  But the most beautiful thing she's got is her something new.


So, this is my first venture into writing for the Gossip Girl fandom. I used to write for The O.C., but it's been a while. I have just been really inspired lately by Dan and Blair, and I really haven't enjoyed a TV couple like them in a long time. So, please take the time to review and tell me if you like it (or even if you didn't, just be nice, please! :) )

I'm also thinking about doing some companion pieces (an engagement story, honeymoon), so let me know if you'd like to see more! Doesn't really take place in any specific time other than "the future". Enjoy!

...

_Spotted: Blair Waldorf in a little white dress getting out of a towncar outside New York City Hall with S in tow. Could the quaint bouquet of peonies and masterfully crafted veil in S's hands be an indication that Queen B has finally found her king?_

_Spotted: Another towncar outside City Hall, this time revealing Nate Archibald, dressed to the nines and looking like a Dapper Dan. And speaking of the Brooklynite, it looks as though we may soon have to be addressing him as Not So Lonely Boy._

"Am I afraid?"

He feels a hand clap firmly on his back, "No, man, you're not afraid. Just nervous."

Dan turns his head to glance at his best man, sitting on the bench next to him and shakes his head, "Eleanor told Blair that when she married Cyrus, she had never felt more sure of anything in her entire life. And here I am getting ready to marry _Blair Waldorf_ for god sakes and I feel..." His words trail off because he can't bring himself to say it.

_Insignificant._

Nate looks back, handsome and carefree as always, his untamed hair a sharp contrast from his crisp black suit. He just laughs at Dan's words, "Look, dude, I've been there. And trust me, it's just Blair's way of making _you_ better. It's not that you need to be fixed, it's just that, when you're around her, you just want to be the best you can. And it sucks because your best never feels good enough. Not for someone like her."

Dan is about to tell him that that's not exactly the inspiring speech he was looking for when Nate continues, "But as your best man, I am here to tell you that _this_ is where you are supposed to be. This is what you're supposed to be doing. So straighten up and put on a smile for your bride, man! It's your wedding day!"

Nate's charm has always been infectious, and Dan feels the nerves leave him almost instantly as he laughs with his best friend. "You're right. I'm ready."

Nate's phone jingles and he smiles to himself before turning the phone to Dan and saying, "Just in time."

Dan looks at the screen and sees a text from Serena. It reads: "She's ready."

Nate fires off a quick reply and the two of them are standing for what seems to be only a few seconds when they hear the click-clacking of her heels coming around the corner toward them.

Her white dress is accessorized perfectly with a simple diamond necklace of Serena's (her "something borrowed") and she wears the color as a recognition that this is her do-over, her chance to get things right. The bodice is plain and soft, the sleeves are long, lacy and opaque. The length is short but not scandalous and her shoes are a nod to Tiffany's (her "something blue").

Her hair is absolutely breathtaking, falling in loose waves around her shoulders, but that's not the part that Dan will remember most when he tells their kids about this day 20 years from now.

That part is the makeshift veil resting atop her head. There is a piece of mesh (only the most expensive mesh, he's sure) with solid white trim attached to her "something old", a simple white headband. Dan is sure he can remember the girl in that headband smacking him with a purse, keeping him away from Serena, calling him "Cabbage Patch", dripping with disdain. It all seemed so big then, but it bears no weight when he compares their high school days to this moment right now. He smiles at the nod to their past, but more importantly, revels in the pride of how far they've come.

As she moves toward him, he sees every time she's ever walked toward him flash before his eyes. Her eyes are hard, threatening, challenging, fierce, tired, scared, lonely, hopeful and happy. He is so entranced by her that he barely feels Nate's hand on his shoulder, almost misses him joking, "Damn, dude, can I have her back?"

By the time she gets in front of him, Dan realizes that the person standing there has changed from a girl to a woman before his very eyes. A little warmth grows inside him upon knowing that he's part of the reason she's turned out so wonderfully. He doesn't want to take anything away from Blair, though, because most of the credit for her growth belongs to her.

When she stops, he releases a breath he didn't realize he was holding and whispers, "Blair..."

Her eyes are twinkling with mischief as she replies, "Humphrey."

_Blair Humphrey_. He smiles in spite of himself, "Soon enough."

She rolls her eyes playfully and laughs, knowing she should've seen the joke coming. Then again, he has always had the ability to surprise her.

Nate clears his throat and the two are snapped out of their reverie. He smiles and squeezes her hand, remarking, "Blair, you look incredible."

She thanks him as Serena reaches over to playfully straighten Dan's tie. She glows, stating, "And look at you! So handsome."

Dan knows that Blair will probably mock Serena for this later, only half-jokingly, but he wants to tell her that she has absolutely nothing to worry about, hasn't for a long time. Since Dan is a writer, he likes to think of the two women as the novels he loves.

It's true, he judged Serena's book by its cover and sure, he'll admit that he leafed through the pages, occasionally stopping on an interesting word or phrase or passage. Serena's a picture book, but Blair, she's words you don't know the definitions of. She's flowery sentences, and poignant imagery. Dan was drawn in by her cover too, but she's the book he wants to pick up time and again. He wants to savor every word, and never get to the end. He wants to take notes and scribble in the margins until his words stop making sense.

His dad and Lily understood when Dan told them he and Blair just wanted to have a simple ceremony with only their best friends present. However, Eleanor was another story. Eventually, Blair got her to agree on a compromise. If they were allowed to have their wedding in peace, her mother would be allowed to throw them a reception as grand as her heart desired. Dan knows what awaits them.

_Dan and Blair will emerge from the room, hand in hand and ready to take on the world. Dan will turn to kiss Blair again, not able to contain himself even for a second. When they finally pull apart, they will notice that two people are absent. They will walk outside, assuming their friends left to give them some privacy. As soon as the doors open they will be showered with rose petals falling from the sky courtesy of Nate and Serena. Blair will have the purest laugh of happiness and Dan will catch Serena's eye, thanking her without a single word. Her simple nod will be all they need to know what they have now is deeper than any connection they've ever shared before. As they get to the car and Dan holds the door open for his bride, Blair will look back at her best friend, eyes shimmering with happiness and everything she wants to say, words of thankfulness, love, and sisterhood. And Serena's smile is all she'll need in return._

_When they arrive outside the Waldorf home, Nate and Serena will go up the elevator first, leaving Dan and Blair alone for a few fleeting, yet peaceful moments. Their hands will never separate, not even when they get in the elevator and Dan tries to move to the other side to give her some room to breathe, to take it all in._

_She will simply smile, stretching their connected arms and coyly asking him to pull her close without saying a single word. And of course, he will, letting her rest her head on his shoulder. She has had space her whole life, given by a father who left, a mother who favored her work, boys whose attention was intense, but fleeting. Now, Dan will lean down and kiss the top of her head, murmuring "I love you" and she won't even want to fight the shivers the statement evokes. She will feel protected, completely confident that Dan will never let her go._

_The moment will be too short when they hear the elevator ding. The last calm moment they will have will occur right before Serena shouts, "Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Humphrey!" It will be the moment they cross the threshold from DanAndBlair to DanBlairAndEveryoneElse. Eleanor will hug him and Rufus will hug her, and for hours afterwards, it'll be dancing and laughing and talking with others, but rarely with each other._

_They will finally come back together after most of the casual guests have left, when it's just close family and friends encouraging them to share a dance. They will oblige, his hand on her waist, hers on his shoulder and while the party looks on, they will talk about everything and nothing all at once. Dan will tell her about Nate's earlier comment and she will laugh so hard Dan will have to hold her tighter to keep her from falling. Maybe he won't realize that was her plan all along._

_Chuck will come, but he won't stay long. She won't be looking for him, but he'll catch her eye and raise the glass he's holding in her direction. She'll smile peacefully and return to her conversation. Something inside her will completely relax knowing that it's finally over. He will shake Dan's hand, not as a concession to a game they both stopped playing long ago, but as a genuine wish for happiness. It will be selfish and petty, Dan will admit, but he will be glad when Chuck is gone, and he won't just be talking about the party._

_As everything winds down, Rufus will pull Dan aside and place a set of keys in his hand. He will explain, "I know it's been unofficially yours for years, but I want to give you the loft as a wedding present. Now, I'm quite sure it's not the castle your princess will want to base her kingdom around, but it seems like the perfect first home. You've always been happy there, and as strange as it is, so has she."_

_Dan will want to say so many things to his father, how much he loves him, how happy he is, how happy he knows Blair will be, but instead they will just share a hug that says everything. Blair will smile brightly to herself across the room, letting the weight of how she has entered a family with so much __**love**__ settle comfortably in her chest. She will finish her conversation (that she really wasn't paying much attention to anyway) and walk over to the father-son duo to tell Dan it's time to go. She will thank Rufus politely for the party, but after seeing the keys in Dan's hand, she will hug him with an intensity rivaling her new husband's. He will say, "Welcome to our family, Mrs. Humphrey" and a sense of relief will wash over her knowing she is forgiven for everything she has ever done to hurt them. All because she loves his only son so fiercely._

_They will say the rest of their goodbyes, and head down to where a limo will be waiting to take them to Brooklyn. She will rest her head on his shoulder all the way there, and when they reach the top of the stairs, he will insist on carrying her over the threshold into the loft. She will tell him it's a silly antequated tradition, but the truth is, she will have been waiting for it since they left the only other home she's ever known. It's the simple action that makes the loft __**theirs**__, and makes the home she grew up in seem so distant, like a world away. She knows she should miss it, but all she can feel are the butterflies in her stomach anticipating the life ahead in this home, __**their home**__._

_A lot will have changed, but parts of Blair Waldorf will remain inside Blair Humphrey. Dan will move to kiss her as soon as he places her safely on the ground, but she will only allow a few quick pecks before distancing herself from him. She will insist on taking off her dress and hanging it up properly, taking down her hair correctly and removing her makeup. Dan, as desperate as he will be to commence their wedding night, will agree to her insistence and grab a piece of stolen cake as she makes her way to the bathroom. He will turn the TV on and flip idly through the channels waiting for her, nothing quite catching his interest like her haphazard humming and the picture in his mind of her eyes glowing as she takes her makeup, her smile widening as she shakes her hair loose. When she finally emerges, he will act like he has not been staring at the bathroom door the entire time. But his cover will be blown as soon as he really looks at her._

_All the pins will be out of her hair, the veil discarded, but it will be falling loosely over her shoulders like it has been all day. She will be fresh-faced, but naturally beautiful as always. And Dan will notice most of all: she hasn't taken her wedding dress off. She'll simply smirk at his confused gaze and shyly assent, "I thought you might want to be the one to take it off."_

_He will move faster than he can ever remember moving before and she will laugh with wild abandonment as he carries her into the bedroom. Everything will be perfect._

As he snaps out of his daydream, he can't help but beam at his bride. Blair is unabashed, unashamed of him. He never wants to admit that any part of the Upper East Side has ever affected him too deeply, but there is always that nagging feeling that he is still an outsider, even with the queen of their world on his arm. The same queen who, every time he gets nervous about a party they "absolutely have to make an appearance at", sits down next to him, places a hand on his arm and says with that mischievous sparkle in her eyes, "Remember, it's your kingdom now." He happily admits that she makes him a better writer, a better socialite, a better man.

When it comes time for Nate to hand him Blair's ring, he takes it very carefully and slides it on her finger oh-so-slowly. He finds himself wishing that time would stop or at least slow down so that this moment would never end. He does everything he can to attempt to make his wish come true, but the delay is so prolonged that even Blair can't help but softly beg, "Please hurry, Dan."

He grins, but does as she says. She's always had him in the palm of her hand and today is no different.

When he (_finally)_ kisses her, he knows it's cliché, but he realizes there is no word more fitting than "perfect." His eyes are still closed when they pull apart and he whispers, "I could kiss you forever."

She hums contentedly, "Good thing."

He laughs, realizing in that moment that he has lost any advantage he may have gained over her in the joke from before. Then again, Blair's always been smarter than anyone would give her credit for, even him in the beginning.

It's a beautiful spring evening when it's finished. Blair Waldorf is married for the second (and _final_) time and Dan Humphrey's hand is laced with hers in a way that feels like forever. The beauty of it is that they're only at the beginning.


End file.
